In Times of War
by Ana Muune
Summary: Commissioned fanfiction. Kooper and Henry are soldiers in the Vietnam War and they have enough problems trying to stay alive. But when Koop finds out Henry is actually a girl, the threads start unraveling and they have more than the Victor Charlies to worry about now.
1. The Crash

Original: link in profile

Fanfiction of Fallon Lewis's characters and basic concept. I do not own these characters: Kooper, Henry and Fallon. Please feel free to review with criticisms, suggestions and requests.

* * *

 **The Crash**

Kooper had grown up in a family with strong opinions and beliefs: you go to church every Sunday and you beg the Lord for forgiveness of your sins during confession; you vote Republican or you were a traitor to America; and most relevant to the current political situation, Communism was evil. So, when he decided to join the military, his family had been immensely proud of him. He'd been watching the Vietnam War unfold on the television for the past decade, and had been eager to join when he'd turned eighteen, but at the time his father's wartime injuries from the Nazi war had been acting up and Koop couldn't just leave the ranch. It had taken three years to help put the ranch in a place where Koop could put familial responsibility aside and see to his patriotic duties.

Basic training had been hell, but the strict way his father had run the house had prepared him surprisingly well. It pushed him to his limits, but all that hard work meant that he did better than any of the other recruits. His fellow soldiers had asked him why he'd joined the Air Cavalry when he was so keen on serving his country. Many of them had joined to avoid being drafted as infantry; less likely to get killed that way, they insisted. Koop had thought about joining the Marines as a grunt. He had no qualms about laying down his life and killing Commies but the years he'd spent daydreaming about traversing the sky had been nagging him at the back of his mind when he'd been at the recruiters. Such delight overwhelmed him when the recruiter had mentioned offhand a position as a helicopter pilot was open that Koop found himself interrupting the monotone droll of the man to say breathlessly, "That one. I want that one."

The recruiter snapped out of the uninterested expression he'd settled into once he had realized that Koop didn't need convincing to joining the military. He glanced back at the list of positions he'd been mindlessly repeating and asked, "The engineers?"

"No, the helicopter pilot," Koop had said eagerly.

"You got any experience with flying?" the recruiter eyed him, not trusting the sudden excitement in the man.

"I cleaned the planes in the airfield as a kid and the pilots would teach me the controls instead of paying me," Kooper explained.

"But you've never taken a bird into the sky, have you?" the man bit on his dirty toothpick.

"No sir," Koop admitted.

The recruiter gave him a long considering gaze, but then shrugged, "Fine. Birdie pilot it is, kid."

The day he'd been fully trained and wore the sleeve patch of the 1st Air Cavalry Division had been the proudest day of his life. He was finally able to lay his life down for his country. He was sent to Vietnam the next day and had been a dedicated soldier since - focusing on transporting troops and supplies in and out of combat zones and serving his role in the war against the Commies. He'd settled into a comfortable routine, got to know his fellow soldiers and was known as a reliable pilot that wouldn't bail at the first sign of trouble; the troops knew that when Kooper Royle was sent for the extraction, he was going to try his damndest to make sure no soldier got left behind. He was shamelessly proud of that reputation, though he'd never admit it.

That pride turned to folly so slowly that he never realized he was taking it too far until it was much too late. In a moment of arrogance, he kept the helicopter hovering just that moment too long and they were hit.

He tried to veer them to safety by steering the smoking helicopter away from the combat zone, but the controls just weren't responding like they should've been. There wasn't time for anxiety and fear as Koop's mind focused on a single goal - survival. There were six other soldiers in the bird with him and their lives were in his hands, now more than ever.

He pushed the last of the fuel through the engine in a big spurt which lurched the helicopter forward; the blades whirring and whining with the sudden strain. The entire left side assembly was useless, but he used what little the right side could do to aim them towards the canopy of a thatch of trees. There was screaming in the copter from the passengers who were demanding to know what was going on, but Koop had no time to waste on their fearful questions if he wanted them all to live through this. He cut the fuel so that it was only momentum that carried them forward.

"Hold onto something!" he snapped. His grip on the controls was already so tight that his knuckles were white and a vein in his neck stood out from the strain. The crash into the treetops rocked the copter and Koop could hear the tail snap off. The blades kept whirring for a long, long minute; chopping the trees and throwing the debris through the windows and doors. Even before they could slow down, the pressure of colliding against bark and tree trunk was crushing the delicate blades even as they decimated the tree - like a dark caricature of mutual destruction.

There was groaning behind him, meaning that at least _someone_ had survived. Holding tightly to the frame of the helicopter, he tried to unbuckle himself only to find that his seatbelt had seized. He reached for the blade he kept tied against his seat. He swore when he couldn't feel it in its place. He didn't have time to wonder where it had flown off to. He needed to get out of the helicopter and get his passengers safely out of there before the Charlies - one of the slang names for the Viet Cong soldiers - got to them. It didn't matter that his heli was trashed, he was still the one that was supposed to get them back safe dammit.

"Hey, pull your shit together soldier," the voice finally permeated through his anxiety and panic. He turned his head to blink at the medic who was trying to get him to calm down. Once he had Koop's attention, Henry asked, "Can you move?"

Koop momentarily admired the way Henry's trained eyes were watching his pupillary response and his hands were checking his pulse at the side of his throat. That's right, they just needed to fall back on their training right now. Pleased that his voice was calmer than his mind, Koop responded, "The belt's stuck and my knife's flown out."

"I'll cut you loose," Henry nodded. "Stay still. The belt is _tight_. Any tighter and it'll start cutting off your circulation real fast." Koop nodded as Henry pulled out his knife and awkwardly reached around to Koop's front from behind the seat to cut him loose. The near side wasn't an issue as Henry's sharp blade shredded the belt fibres after a couple sharp slides of the blade, but the far side was going to be harder.

"I'll get it," Koop started to say, but then hissed in pain. He glanced down at his side and the bloodstain finally registered along with the pain.

"I told you to _stay still_ ," Henry snapped. "You've probably got a broken rib or two with the way you smashed against that lever. I got this." Henry squeezed in between the lever and Koop, intent on reaching Koop's far side in the tight space with tree branches poking through the windows on all sides of them. Luckily none of them had speared the pilot.

Breathing had gotten a little harder since his injury had registered, so Koop held his breath for a moment. Henry pressed closer and that's when the helicopter lurched. A tree branch had given way and the back of the helicopter fell another two feet. Koop grabbed onto Henry as the angle of the floor changed abruptly so that the medic didn't slide down. He would've smashed into the back of the helicopter or fallen down to his death.

And for a moment Koop wished he had. He had the strangest sensation that Henry had breasts… The man was crushed against him, with Koop's shoulders resting firmly in what felt like a valley on the man's chest.

 _Kooper Royle_ , he chided to himself, _you have clearly been without a good woman for too long_.

* * *

Koop and Henry were the last one on the ground. They took a minute to catch their breath and as Koop turned around to thank Henry for the rescue, the medic was mysteriously gone.

His attention was momentarily distracted by the other five soldiers he didn't recognize trying to figure out which way they should be hiking. Koop put his two cents in, having been the last one to see the lay of the land in the air. By the time Henry came back from behind the cover of some other trees, the others had made a plan.

"Where'd you go?" Koop asked.

"Just needed to take a piss," Henry waved off his question. "Let me take a look at that before we head out."

Koop frowned at the explanation as the medic took a look at his wound. The way Henry had been adjusting his shirt on the way back didn't jive with stepping out to take care of business. _The knockers_ , his mind reminded him, but he reprimanded his foolish mind for taking a pain induced fancy as reality.

He had broken three ribs, Henry declared, but had proceeded to quickly set them, staunch the blood flow and advised him to speak up when the pain got bad. Henry revealed, "I have some pills for the pain, but not many. We'll stretch them out as long as we can so I'll give you one when you think you really need it."

They started the hike soon after, not wanting the Charlies to find them. The smoking helicopter above them was quite the red arrow pointing at them, after all. In accordance with Koop's intel, they were heading towards a U.S. outpost not too far from their current location, but it was already late in the day and it would probably take them until the next afternoon to reach it. Walking around these jungles at night was just asking to get lost, so when the sun disappeared, they looked for a place to hide.

By the side of a stream, the roots of the trees stuck out where the ground had shifted and the water had swept away the dirt only to leave smooth wooden caves behind. The spaces weren't big so they split up into a couple different trees in pairs. Koop found himself sharing his accommodations with Henry.

"When's room service coming, do ya think?" Koop joked, trying to keep his spirits up and his mind off the pain in his chest.

"Here, take one of these," Henry offered a pill and his water canteen.

"Nah, don't need one," Koop shook his head. "Give it to one of the others."

"The others have scrapes and bumps, not a bone sticking through their skin and another two pincering their lung," Henry replied sardonically. "Take the damn pill."

"Yes, medic sir," Koop grinned, taking the offered pill and washing it down. He was quite relieved at Henry's insistence, even though he'd been trying to refuse the offer earlier. They hadn't managed to salvage much food from the accident and they didn't dare light a fire, so they were sharing a cold ration as they listened to the water trickle by and glimpsed at the part of the starry sky they could see from their position.

"You should get some rest," Henry advised. "We still have quite the hike tomorrow."

"Right," Koop nodded. He leaned up against the side of the tree wall with his uninjured side, not wanting to lie down and fall into a deep sleep only to roll onto his injured side and do some unwitting damage. He was out before he knew it.

* * *

He awoke with a start later that night as an arrow of pain jabbed his ribs. He adjusted his position so that the pressure was alleviated and turned to Henry with thoughts of asking for another pill.

But Henry was curled up on the ground nearby, sound asleep. It took him a few minutes to really process what he was seeing but his mouth fell into a gape almost immediately. Henry's shirt had been somewhat damaged in the crash and the buttons had popped off. It wasn't a big deal while they were upright, but from this angle it was easy to see down the shirt.

And he could see straight to the wraps of cloth tightly binding her breasts.


	2. Bullet of Truth

**Bullet of Truth**

Koop was in a daze. In going to fight in another country, he'd expected to come across a variety of new situations. He was very much a traditional all-American boy but he wasn't so self-centered as it to ignore the reality of other cultures and mindsets in the world. He'd made the effort to talk to some of the returning soldiers and even peruse through a couple of books in the local public library. But nothing could've prepared him for this.

Henry was a girl.

A faint voice in his head reasoned that perhaps the pain meds were toying with his mind, but Koop just shook his head and tried to wade through the denial. He was certain of what he'd seen. Those were a gorgeous pair of soft pink breasts. He took a deep breath and reminded himself that girl or not, Henry was a fellow soldier. He had to keep it together.

"We going the right way, Koop?" one of the others called back to him, bringing him out of his musings. He took a glance around and nodded mutely in response.

"Need another pill?" Henry asked in a low voice. He - no, she had stepped in close until their shoulders had touched.

Koop swallowed, "No."

"You sure? You've been pretty quiet and zoned out. We should be there soon, so I've got enough meds to spare, "Henry assured him.

"Nah it's not the pain," he explained. Now that he knew Henry was a girl he was surprised that the soft lilt of her voice hadn't given her away. He supposed if you didn't know, the soft timbre was just gender neutral enough to pass suspicion.

"Then what is it?" she asked.

He was saved from answering by an exclamation of delight from one of their group up ahead. Henry and Koop glanced up to see a sentry from the camp hailing them.

* * *

Koop was quiet as a doctor worked on him; using his bewildered thoughts about Henry as a welcome distraction from the pain. After a handful of pills, he leaned back, eager to allow the silent, dark bliss of sleep to take him for a short time.

An explosion jarred him into an upright position, yanking him forcefully from sleep. No one was in the tent with him to explain the situation, so he scrambled to as feet, gritting his teeth against the pain as he tossed his shirt back on.

Stepping outside of the dark bubble of the tent, he was immediately hit with a flurry of activity as people ran around, grabbing weapons and supplies. There was gunfire and grenade explosions on every side. His pain and drug saturated senses were unable to process the events fast enough, leaving him staring and blinking at the battle going on around him.

Then someone grabbed him by the elbow and dragged him down to the ground. Screaming over a nearby explosion, Henry asked, "You okay, Koop?"

He put a hand over her's; some chivalrous instinct in him forcing his mind to focus. He assured her, "I'm fine. Charlies found the camp?" At her nod, he said, "I need a weapon and then let's get out of here."

Luckily weapons were not in short supply. In the chaos, there were many strewn about and as the two of them loped through the camp to follow the general direction other soldiers were gathering, Koop picked up a weapon along the way. The two of them joined another squadron of soldiers soon enough, and joined the battle as a party of Charlies found them on the outskirts of the camp.

Koop and Henry ducked behind supply crates like their fellow comrades. The firefight was short lived, but acutely intense. Shots whizzed past them and against the crates around them, splintering the wood and throwing pieces into the air. The burning of gunpowder was heavy in the air. The heat of the sporadic fires through camp were turning the Vietnam afternoon air muggy and unbearable.

"We can't hold this position," Koop yelled to the nearest cluster of friendlies.

There were some agreeing nods before one of the sergeants yelled out, "Retreat! Retreat!"

"We gotta get to the woods. Hopefully we'll lose them there," Henry said between gunfire. Koop nodded and glanced across the path towards where the others were retreating. The distance was about three feet, but the lack of cover on the pathway turned it into a chasm as wide as the Grand Canyon. The hail of bullets would cut through them before they got to the woods.

Henry must've had the same thought because she gritted her teeth and urgently looked around. Her eyes widened but before Koop could figure out why, another round of bullets was aimed their way. When he ducked back behind the crate after returning fire, Henry put a hand on his leg to get his attention.

Koop's heart almost stopped.

Henry didn't notice however. She told him, "I found a grenade. I'll toss it for cover but as soon as it explodes, we gotta run."

"I'll throw it," Koop insisted. "Give it here."

"What?" Henry was momentarily confused.

"You'll have to expose yourself if you want to aim worth sh- any good," he told her, catching himself just in time before he swore in front of a girl. "Let me do it."

"You'll have to expose yourself too," Henry said, incredulously. "So it doesn't matter. Just get ready to run."

Before he could stop her, Henry jumped up and threw the grenade. It exploded much closer to them that Koop would've liked, but he shot out from behind the crate under the cover of the rising black, acrid smoke and debris returning to the ground. He leaped across to the crates on the other side, anxiously searching the foul air behind him for Henry.

His heart stopped again when he heard a cry of pain. He had been about to backtrack but Henry came into view, almost crashing into him. She had turned with the force and surprise of the bullet hitting her side, sending her twirling into Koop's arms. Koop dragged them a few steps further behind the crates, getting back down to the ground.

Henry looked up at Koop in surprise. For a moment, everything seemed to slow. The screaming of friends and enemies became faded and the smoke around them made it feel like they were absolutely alone on the battlefield. Confusion muddled through Henry's eyes. Koop's gaze displayed a genuine, gentle worry for her. The way his arms had wrapped protectively around her and still held her more snugly than they should've was hard to ignore. Henry's eyes cleared as understanding dawned on her and she held her breath as pure terror momentarily took ahold of her.

He must've seen the fear in her eyes because he gently murmured, "Let's go."

The world came crashing back against them and the two of them got to their feet. Henry pushed the fear down, knowing that if she thought too much, she might not be alive long enough to deal with what he knew. They skittered from crate to crate, following the soldiers ahead of them. She had a hand pressed to her wound, but blood was already seeping out from between her fingers. He was surprised at how well she was taking the wound; it wasn't slowing her down at all.

Somehow, they made it to the trees with a group of friendlies. The flurried scramble into the woods lasted almost a half hour until they all stopped for breath, panting. Koop had one eye on Henry, so he saw her lean against a tree and slide down the bark until she met the ground. There was a smear of bright red blood painting the tree, in stark contrast with her pale, pained face.

One of the other medics noticed too.

"Jesus, Henry. Here let me take a look," he offered, strolling closer.

"I'm good, Rob," Henry waved away the man.

"That looks bad, man. Let me take a look," Rob insisted.

The color drained from her face further. She glanced up, sensing his eyes on her. A flash of that damned chivalrous instinct reared its ugly head and Koop cleared his throat, "Hey Rob. You see to the others. I got this kid. I'll use his med kit."

Rob looked confused, "I can do it."

"Henry patched me up earlier. Let me even the score," Koop grinned.

The man looked confused, glancing between them for one confused moment before he shook his head, "Whatever. If you can't stop the bleeding or if the bullet is still in there, you call me. You're a pilot, not a medic."

"Got it," Koop nodded seriously. Once Rob had turned away to see to the bruises, cuts and bullet wounds of the others, Koop kneeled in front of Henry.

Her eyes were low, her jaw set tightly and her lips pressed together - in pain or fear, he wasn't sure, but either case was unacceptable. He opened her med kit, giving him a few more moments before he had to act. Her breathing was shallow and rapid, matching the pace of his heartbeat. When he opened the canteen of water, she glanced up at him.

Those eyes pinned him with such a fierce determination that he found his lips twitching with a reassuring smile. He murmured, "Do you mind?" motioning towards her wound.

She gave him a terse nod.

He splashed the wound with water. He hesitated briefly before he wiped the blood from her skin, trying to act as quickly as possible as if to keep their physical contact to a minimum. The last thing he wanted was for her to misunderstand his intentions. He spoke, if only to break the awkward silence, "It's just a graze. A deep graze, mind you, but no bullet."

She gave a short nod again.

"It's okay," he assured her. "I won't tell anyone."

She met his eyes with silent suspicion as she searched his gaze for his intentions.

"I won't… give you anything," she got out through bared teeth. As he finished wrapping the bandage around her torso, he looked at him in confusion. Her words made no sense to him for a moment.

And then he balked, "God! No, I don't want you to… Ugh." He shook his head in disgust at the idea and then sighed, "I'm not that kind of guy."

She wasn't entirely convinced.

He sighed again, "What's your name?"

"Henry," she grumbled automatically.

"Like Henrietta?" he asked.

"No, like Henry," she said stubbornly.

He rolled his eyes, "I was asking your real name, but fine. If you don't want to talk about it, that's fine. I'm all done." He packed away the med supplies and stood, intending to leave her alone. The last thing he wanted was to make her uncomfortable. Being in a war zone surrounded by men, she must be uncomfortable enough as it was.

"Fallon," she offered abruptly as he turned around.

He glanced back at her and tilted his head in question.

"That's my name," she mumbled, disgruntled at offering the truth. But was there any other choice at this point? If she made an enemy of this man, everything she'd worked for so far would be stripped away from her with just a word from him.

His face broke out into a warm smile. He said softly, "Pretty name. Thanks for saving my ass back in the camp, Fallon."

She observed him for a long, silent moment before giving him a hesitant nod.


	3. A Plane to Somewhere

**A Plane to Somewhere**

Koop only caught a glimpse of her on his way to the plane. He was being rotated out due to his injuries - his ribs were still cracked, which he'd painfully remembered once the adrenaline had drained away.

Henry - or rather, Fallon - had gotten away by scoffing at her superior officer's worry, "It's just a scratch, sir. Nothing I can't handle." With her blase attitude towards her injury, she simultaneously avoided a check-up and was commended for not being a pussy.

Koop couldn't help but muse to himself with a smile, _If only they knew the irony…_

But they hadn't gotten a chance to talk again after the raid. He wasn't sure what he'd say to her anyway. Should he try to convince her to leave with him? Should he try to tell her to come clean with their superiors? What was he even supposed to say to a woman smart enough to fool hundreds of men? What could he say to a woman brave enough to go willingly into a war zone when so many men had fled the country when they'd been conscripted?

In the end, he'd decided to quietly respect her from a distance and hope for the best. If she'd gotten this far on her own, she must know what she was doing. She hadn't stumbled into a war zone accidentally.

So he bid Vietnam goodbye, did a short stint in an army hospital back stateside and then visited his family. Two months later, he found himself back under the hot Vietnam sun.

When he'd first run into Fallon at the camp, he'd almost been foolish enough to call her by her real name. Halfway through the word, he corrected himself; flushing in embarrassment under her hot glare.

 _Great impression you're making, you fool,_ he grumbled to himself as the two of them hurried in opposite directions as if nothing strange had just occurred. He beat himself up about it for days until he finally decided that there was nothing to do about it but apologize.

"Hey Rob, have you seen Henry?" Koop stopped his friend as the other man was hurrying back to his tent. He was immensely relieved to be in possession of his umbrella to ward off the torrential downpour, unlike Rob who seemed to have been caught outside when the storm hit.

The drenched man spoke loudly to be heard over the rain, "Captain Farbright had called him in for something. Looked serious."

Koop frowned and after a moment of hesitation headed towards the captain's tent. He stopped just outside the tent, nervously noting the suspicious lack of any other soldiers in the immediate vicinity. Had the rain chased away the guards as well?

"Stop!"

Koop's head swung back to the tent with wide eyes and a rising panic in his chest. The next two minutes were a blur in his mind even later when he tried to piece together exactly what had happened. He'd responded by instinct; his actions completely out of his control.

What little he remembered was in flashes of images. Farbright's hands pulling on the front of Fallon's uniform hard enough to rip the buttons off. Fallon trying to shove his hands away from her. Farbright trying to push her to her knees. Farbright on the floor after Fallon kneed him between the legs. Koop bending down to punch the captain in the face when he grabbed Fallon's leg to drag her back towards him. All three of them yelling.

By the time people had come to check out the noise, Koop had already put his jacket around Fallon's shoulders and she was buttoning it up with rushed, nervous fingers.

"You think you two can get away with this?" Farbright spat out from the floor. There was sweat beaded on his forehead from the pain in his groin, slicking his blond hair in the humidity.

"You-," Koop began, his voice more enraged than he'd imagined possible.

But Fallon shot him a sideways glare that forced him to clamp down his mouth immediately. That girl would've made a good officer.

"What's going on here?"

Koop wasn't looking forward to explaining everything. The three of them were herded into the Major's tent, who looked less than impressed to have three of his soldiers fighting each other. It was common to have the NCMs fight over petty things, but for a captain to be involved? He had his mouth set sternly as he heard them out.

Koop and Fallon had to hold their tongue as Farbright expressed his outrage to the Major. Koop had to bite his tongue to keep his anger in check, but that anger drained away quickly as Farbright revealed his hand, "This soldier is a _girl_! We have a _girl_ in our camp, masquerading as a soldier! What is this? A picnic?!"

Koop's breath was caught in his chest as he watched Fallon; her expression surprisingly passive. She'd expected this from Farbright. She'd expected her secret to be revealed eventually. He glanced around and wondered if this could somehow just be kept between them and Fallon could keep going on as she was, but even he knew that hope was slim.

"What is he talking about soldier?" the major frowned, disbelieving the captain because of the utter absurdity of the statement.

"I'm not sure, sir," Fallon shrugged, trying to play it cool.

"Get her to take off that jacket and you'll see!" Farbright insisted.

"You want me to tell the boy to get undressed, Farbright?" the major shook his head. Farbright moved towards Fallon himself and again, out of instinct, Koop grabbed his outreached hand around the wrist before the captain could lay a hand on Fallon.

His heart sank again, realizing a moment too late the situation he'd put Fallon in.

Farbright exclaimed in satisfaction, "See? See how this kid is protecting her?"

The major frowned glancing between all three soldiers in his tent. He couldn't believe the words he was saying, but, "Sorry to ask you this soldier, but take off that jacket."

Fallon didn't even look at Koop as she took a deep breath and sighed. She began unbuttoning the jacket. Halfway down the buttons, she let her hands slip away so that the jacket parted enough to show her ruined medic shirt and the wrapped breasts beneath. There was a clinical detachment at the way she let the truth sink in before she pinched the cloth of Koop's jacket together again.

"The hell," was all the major could utter in his shocked state.

The matter was promptly covered up. The U.S. Army didn't want everyone to know they'd been made a fool of by a girl. They promptly sent Fallon back on the next plane and agreed not to charge her as long as she kept quiet about the whole incident and didn't try to bring up Farbright on sexual harassment charges. Koop was threatened similarly - forget any of this happened and he wouldn't be brought up on charges for striking a superior officer. Koop and Fallon never knew officially, but rumor had it that Farbright was transferred out to a remote posting as part of the informal justice the army often employed for its troublemakers.

And that was the last time Koop had expected to see Fallon ever.

Sometimes, he would lay in his bunk at night under the Vietnamese sky and think about the girl who had given up all the comforts of home to come out here to fight with them. He couldn't but wonder what brought such a smart, capable woman out into the middle of a battlefield. He couldn't but wonder what she was doing back home now, what kind of life she was leading and what trouble she was getting into now.

And in a secret place in his heart, he couldn't help but wonder if she ever thought about him.

Two years passed and the war in Vietnam came to a close. Back stateside, he found himself on an airport, waiting for a plane back home. Some of his buddies were waiting for their own plane and they'd all started up a game of cards to help the time pass quicker. In the middle of a playful taunt, Koop's mouth hung open.

"Oye, Koop buddy. You okay? The man's having a stroke," his friend joked. Koop dropped the cards in his hand, despite having a winning hand and jolted up to his feet. Their impromptu card table slid a little when he nudged it by accident, making some of their coins slip onto the ground and roll away, much to the loud dismay of his friends. But Koop could care less. He was striding across the departures lounge with an excited skip in his step.

He caught her elbow, making her pause midway in her sentence and turn around. Her annoyed expression quickly morphed into surprise and then an excited glimmer entered her eyes. He couldn't believe he'd somehow gotten lucky enough to behold that face again.

"We have to go, Fallon," her friend called to her, looking in confusion between the two of them.

"My plane's taking off soon," she murmured to him.

"There's always a plane taking you off somewhere," Koop groused, letting his hand drop now that she wasn't about to disappear on him again. "I have questions you know. I stuck my neck out for you. Don't I deserve some answers?"

"And maybe a couple drinks too. But I really do have to catch this plane," she smiled. She dug into her purse and pressed a card into his hand, "This is where I work now. Call me."

He glanced down at the card, noting the "Doctor" beside her name. He blinked up at her, but she'd already gotten to the desk and was handing her tickets to the stewardess. Over the noise of the airport around him, he could just barely make out her friend ask, "Who is that handsome man, Fallon?"

"Someone I'd like to know better," Fallon grinned.

He watched as she strode to the gate, the respectable skirt emphasizing her graceful nature when all he was used to were the baggy army pants that had hid it so well. She paused at the lip of the gate, and glanced back at him. Her smile lit up her eyes and she waved.

And then he had to watch her leave again.


	4. A Direct Line to the Heart

**A Direct Line to the Heart**

"Koop, how much longer are you going to be?" Samantha complained, poking her head into their dad's office. Her long dirty blonde hair was tied back into a braid. Her lithe form and bright blue eyes made her quite popular at her high school, which her protective older brother was quite disgruntled about. Good thing Sam was a good kid and was more interested in spending time with her friends than boys.

"I'll be as long as I'll be!" Koop hissed, quickly trying to cover up the mouthpiece of the blue phone.

"Do you have to go?" Fallon asked from the other side of the line.

"What kind of answer is that?" Sam complained loudly. "I want to use the phone, Koop!"

"No! It's fine. It's just my little sister," he explained to Fallon as he glared at the offending teenager. He snapped at Sam, "Get lost, twerp. I'll call you once I'm off the phone."

"But I want to call Barb and ask her to go out with me," Sam whined.

"Well do it later!" Koop grumbled.

"With the way you're hogging the phone, it'll be dark by then!" Sam whined.

"I swear to god, kid-," Koop growled.

"If you need to get off the phone-," Fallon tried again.

"No no! It's fine," Koop insisted.

"It isn't fine," Sam interjected.

"You little-!" Koop started. Fallon couldn't help but smile at the disagreement between the siblings as she worked on her reports.

"What are you two fighting about?" their mother's voice called out in the background as their ruckus drew attention as it always did.

"Koop's talking to his girlfriend again and won't share the phone," Sam tattled.

"She's not my girlfriend, you little shit," Koop flushed. On the other side of the phone, Fallon's cheeks had reddened slightly too and it was hard to squash the smile that stretched her lips.

Sam gasped, "Ma, he swore at me! Koop swore at me!"

"Sammy leave your brother alone," their mother scolded loudly. "It's about time he got himself a girl if I have any hope for grandchildren."

"Ma!" Koop moaned despairingly. He was doomed now for sure. Was that Fallon laughing at him from the other side of the phone? Samantha was certainly laughing at him. He glared at the girl as she made her retreat now that she was assured in her victory; she had successfully embarrassed Koop.

Sometimes he wished he had stayed in the army instead of coming back to the family farm, but with John getting a scholarship to college, he couldn't let his injured father bear the burden of the farm alone. Putting up with his sister's shenanigans was worth being close to family - usually.

Fallon's voice jarred him out of ruminating on how he'd like to make his sister's life hell. She murmured, "Koop? You still there?"

"Yeah!" he replied and then winced at his overly enthusiastic voice. "Yeah, I'm still here..."

"Well | was trying to tell you that it's okay if you have to get off the phone because l have rounds soon," she told him.

"Oh," his disappointment was all too easy to hear.

"I'm sorry, Koop," she laughed. "I wish I could keep talking some more."

"It's alright," he assured her. "You've got an important job to do. All those sick people are counting on you."

"Um, I was thinking... You're always talking about visiting the city and I've finally moved into a bigger apartment," she broached the topic slowly. She was so relieved that he couldn't see the red creeping across her face. She continued, "Why don't you come by? I can try to get some time off and show you around."

"Yeah, I'd like that," he replied quietly. The warmth in his voice made her toes curl. "You let me know when and I'll make the rest happen," she smiled. "For now, I've got to go. I'll call you again this weekend and we'll talk some more about this."

"Sounds like a plan," he grinned. "Bye, Fallon."

She flushed every time as she heard him savor her name like it was a sweet candy. She murmured, "Bye Kooper."

He was grinning like a fool when he hung up the phone and his expression didn't even filter when his mother poked her head around the corner and gave him a knowing glance. She was like an older version of Samantha, but with her hair swept to the back in a bun. She asked, "Good talk, sweetheart?"

"Good enough," he smiled sappily.

"You've been on the phone with this girl for at least on hour, two or three times a week for months. When will you be bringing her home to see me?"

"It ain't like that, ma," Koop protested.

"Well it better get there or your poor heart is going to be broken," his mother warned.

He took a long minute to think before he admitted, "She lives in the city, ma. Haven't seen her for ages but... she invited me over. Said she wants to show me around."

"There's your chance then," his mother grinned. He nodded before she continued, "What is she like then? Tell me all about her."

She settled into the chair across the desk, so Koop took his dad's chair as he daydreamed about Fallon. "You'll like her, ma. She's strong, brave and has a real good heart. She's smarter than John - she's a doctor! But she doesn't ever make me feel stupid. She's all about helping other people and when she figures out how to do that, she really puts her entire being into it. She's just… unbelievable, ma. I don't know why she keeps listening even when all I'm talking about are the cows or a broken tractor, but she does. Somehow, she makes it feel just as important as her saving lives. And she's not afraid of a thing. Fearless. Absolutely fearless. When I met her-. Well, let's just say I would've never thought a woman would risk herself like that just to help people who'd never thank her for it."

* * *

Koop looked around at the hustle and bustle of the city the moment he stepped out of the train station (that could've fit his entire house in it three times over). People were whizzing by him on the sidewalk, cars were inching their way down the street, tall buildings and huge billboards were looming above him and the air was buzzing with noise. He'd been a country boy his entire life and the busiest place he'd ever been was an airport or the military base. But this was an entirely different experience.

He heard Fallon's laughter and turned to her.

"Your face is just glowing with excitement," she remarked. "Come on, we'll take the bus to my place."

He didn't object as she tugged his smaller bag from him and led the way. He asked, "You don't have a car?"

She motioned to the street, where the cars were bumper to bumper, waiting for the lights to change. She explained, "It's hard to get anywhere in a car in the city. You're better off just taking the bus or the subway."

"I wanna try the subway," he grinned.

"Tonight," she promised.

When they'd gotten onto the bus and stashed his bags at their feet, he couldn't help but nervously note how close they were sitting. After all the time they'd spent talking on the phone, it was odd that now they had nothing to say. He sat through the bus ride in comfortable, though nervous silence; anticipating their time together.

Koop had to keep his cool though. He reminded himself that though he might be head over heels for her, it didn't mean she was interested in him. Especially since he was the one who'd caused her to get kicked out of the army in the first place. It was possible that she just saw him as an old army buddy… but his mother was also right. This was his chance. It was now or never, so he had to make this visit count. He had to see if there could be anything more between them than friendship. He hoped that he'd read the signs correctly.

The bus dropped them off at an older, but meticulously well-kept building. There was a brawny doorman at the front who greeted her by her first name and offered to take their bags up. She breezed by him, "We're good, Jack. Thanks." They took the elevator and eventually made it to Fallon's new apartment.

"Nice place," he murmured as he glanced around. It looked like an apartment out of one of his mother's TV dramas. Neat, stylish and with a modern flair.

She shrugged, "One of my friends came and decorated the place for me. I'd rather live in a tent with a dozen other guys for months again, than worry about sham covers and place settings. Here's the guest bedroom and there's the bathroom. Do you want something to drink? I bought some beer for you."

As he dumped his bags by the bed, he called out, "What are you drinking?"

"I like wine. Red, mostly. Want some?" she called back.

"Yeah, I'll try that," he nodded. He made his way into the kitchen and she handed him a glass of red wine from across the counter. He pulled out a bar stool and sat down. He watched her swirl the wine in the glass offhandedly like it was a nervous habit.

She murmured, "So I made reservations at this popular restaurant that serves really great burgers."

"Sounds good," Koop grinned.

"Then I was thinking we could grab some ice cream and walk the waterfront. Then I got us tickets to an art show," Fallon filled him in.

"Art show?" he seemed dubious.

"It definitely won't be your kind of thing, but if you come all the way out here to just do the same things you'd do at home, then what was the point, right?" she challenged.

"I guess you're right," he nodded slowly. "An art show. Huh."

"Tomorrow I'll take you around town to show you the best tourist spots," she promised.

He smiled, "How long do I get you all to myself?"

"I have a shift tomorrow evening," she grumbled. "Sorry, I know I said I could get time off, but-."

"That's okay," Koop grinned. "Don't worry about."

"There's some good bars and pubs downtown so I'll show those to you while we're out tomorrow," she said.

"This stuff tastes pretty good," he remarked, holding up the glass a little to see the light reflecting off of it.

"It's from a winery just outside of the city. They make good stuff," she smiled. They chatted for a little while longer; asking about each other's family, work and such. The bottle was two thirds empty when Fallon glanced at the time and blinked, "Oh. We should get going if we're going to make it to dinner on time."

At the door, Koop plucked her spring coat off the hook and offered, "Here." She slipped her arms into the coat and just for a moment, he was hugging her from behind. When he stepped back to shrug on his own coat, they pointedly avoided eye contact. He stepped out first and once she'd locked up, she murmured, "And we're on our way."


End file.
